The flush tank of a commode has a valve seat assembly which cooperates with a valve element so that when the toilet is flushed, the valve element is lifted from the seat, thereby emptying the contents of the tank into the commode as is known to those skilled in the art. Various flush tank valve assemblies are available on the market and over the past several years they have become standardized so that one valve assembly can be readily substituted for the other.
For example, the Douglas flush valve assembly can be substituted for most any valve assembly found on various different bathroom commodes.
The valve elements of the prior art take on several different forms, including a conical valve element which sealingly engages a complimentary shaped valve seat. In recent years a flapper-type valve element, such as the "Korky" flapper valve element has become popular. The flapper type valve element sealingly engages the upper horizontally disposed rim of the valve seat; and for this reason, when the Korky flapper valve element is substituted for the old conical-type valve element, it is essential that the upper lip of the valve seat be made smooth by somehow removing the irregular surface formed during the casting of the valve assembly.
In recent years, many manufacturers have commenced dressing the circumferentially extending uppermost lip portion of the valve seat in expectation of alternate usage of either of the above described valve elements. However, as time progresses, corrosion and deposition of salts render the upper surface of the lip unsuitable for sealingly engaging the flapper-type valve element; and accordingly, from time to time, it is necessary to reface this horizontally disposed lip of the valve seat.
Therefore, it is desirable to have made available a refacing tool which can be employed to rapidly and efficiently form a smooth horizontally disposed face on any existing valve seat of the various prior art valve assemblies associated with a flush tank device.